Manny & I had a once in a life time opportunity to buy a house. So we took all the money we had saved and purchased our dream home. We knew we wanted to live together with God's blessing under our union so a few weeks after he proposed, we got married in our new backyard. It was a beautiful day, and one we have circled on the calendar - June 17th. We will probably celebrate this date with dinner and a movie for years to come, but we decided that we are going to celebrate our anniversary on the day of the wedding for a few reasons. First and foremost, on December 3rd we took personal vows that we wrote to each other which made our promise extra special and secondly, we were surrounded by those we love most which makes the memory of our wedding in December that much more important.
If you are looking to elope, or get married at a court house to save some cash, I totally understand. We were extremely blessed that my mom gifted us our wedding so we were fortunate to enjoy both a new home and a wedding, but had things been different, and we had to make a choice between our home and a lavish party I would choose our home 100 times over. All that to say, if you are someone sitting in a similar situation, trying to pick between a home or a wedding, I would recommend to buy your home and opt in for a nice dinner with your loved ones instead.
1 - Check in with your state and county laws. We had to show proof that we took a pre-marital class to apply and leave with our marriage license on the same day. Without that certificate we would had to come back three days later.
2 - Buy a dress you can wear again! I love that I get to wear my "wedding dress" on special occasions.
3 - One of my biggest regrets was not having my most important family members with me. I convinced myself because we were having a wedding later on that this wasn't a big deal. In fact, it was a really big deal and the emotional and spiritual weight was felt for weeks and months to come. I regret not having special people there to witness it with us.
4 - Hire a photographer! Do your make up! Buy a beautiful flower bouquet! You won't regret these little details. I cannot say enough about Luis & Dania - not only are they some of my greatest friends but they are the most talented photographers. I got my makeup done professionally and I bought a beautiful bouquet from a florist I found on IG. It made the day feel really special.
Location - Miami Beach Court House & Delamota Backyard
Photographers - The Montejo's
Makeup - Flirtatious Looks
Dress - Reformation
Flowers - Rose Coloured Florals